| WALTONS DIGEST 26-98: Hi everyone, I trust you all received the extra special Waltons Digest, which came out during the week. What a wonderful surprise it was to have that interview in the mail. Once again, my thanks go to Marca and Alex, who made it possible. I've been doing some research this week for my guest stars page, and found something I didn't know. Did any of you know that Ron Howard's father is Rance Howard? Rance Howard pops up from time to time on The Waltons as Dr McIvor. I thought it was an interesting little bit of trivia anyway. :-) There's a fair bit of mail this week so I don't think I'll write much more. Talk to you all again next week. Goodnight everyone, Karen.
PS. Don't forget the talking point for next week is "Give us your comments about how The Waltons dealt with the issue of World War 2". Any comments you like to make about that, please send them in. It is a bit vague, so any will be accepted. :-) By the way, I only have one response on this so far so I hope to receive others by the end of the week!
Hi, this is my first time posting. I just love this group. My mom and I are fans of the show. It is very relaxing to sit back and enjoy the family. It is a great stress-free hour. I was wondering if anybody knows if TNN is planning on airing any of the "lost" episodes. For example the one where Elizabeth has a poltergeist. If I understand it correctly family channel would not air certain episodes so maybe the episodes weren't really "lost" at all. Goodnight Lisa
KAREN'S COMMENT: Hi Lisa. TNN seem to have made a good start because they have already aired one of the missing episodes, "The Ghost Story". Keep your fingers crossed. What season are they up to now? Great digest and I am so glad that Rebecca Irby won the poetry contest. I feel the comments Sylvia made about John boy and Jason's using the ouija board are very appropriate. I sometimes think John boy had a tendency to be a little rambunctious, especially in the Thoroughbred. Do you remember when he wanted to win the race at all costs and hurt Erin and Elizabeth's feelings because he felt they weren't preparing Blue sufficiently for the race. Donald F Nelson and Erin the cat KAREN'S COMMENT: Yes John Boy was at times, very much the bossy older brother.
Hi, Karen and everyone! This is Claire in New Hampshire...I don't think I've posted for a while, but I was prompted by so many things in the latest wonderful episode of the digest, that I'm about to chime in on a lot of stuff. I hope you all don't mind:
To Mary in Texas: I believe 9/30/55 is the date that James Dean died in the car accident, and James Dean definitely starred in the original EAST OF EDEN. Is it possible that Richard Thomas once made a movie of some sort about the life of James Dean?? Perhaps someone else can answer that part of the question. To Kes: The episode you mentioned was "The Courtship" in the first season where Olivia's Uncle Cody comes to town and finds a new love. This brings me to a point I've been wanting to mention to the digest for a while, but haven't brought it up yet. I don't know if it's been mentioned before. Eduard Franz was the actor who played Uncle Cody, and he shows up in a later episode as a completely different character! Eduard Franz later plays Colonel Linville, Selena Linville's grandfather in the fourth season finale entitled "The Collision." But, he's NOT the same actor who played Colonel Linville in the third season's "The Thoroughbred," which was just on TNN last Friday. It's interesting when actors pop up as different characters. I'll be that when "The Waltons" was initially airing, its creators never dreamed that there'd be this group of us tracking their moves so intently! Continuing on the stream of consciousness I can't seem to get off of, I never got around to telling the group that Eduard Franz is on my list of favorite guest actors on the show, especially in that Uncle Cody role. Also on the list is David Selby as Olivia's art teacher in "The Romance" from the third season. (Oooh...I see that's coming up Tuesday on TNN! You'll all have probably just seen it again at the time you get this). David Selby certainly was a feast for the eyes, so they picked a good one to fit the role he was to play. The final one I wanted to mention was Susan Krebs as Hazel Lamphere the teacher in the eighth season episode entitled "The Idol." As someone who has been inspired by some very special teachers in my own life, I was quite touched by the inspiration and friendship that Hazel provided to Elizabeth. I'm sorry that these thoughts are too late for the time that the topic was brought up. I hope no one minds too terribly much. I would like to finish with something that always amused me, related to The Waltons vs. The Simpsons topic. For those who don't watch The Simpsons I just want to say that many of the episodes show Homer Simpson in church on Sunday with his family. Sure, he's usually napping, or listening to a football game on headphones, or generally not paying attention, but he is frequently shown being in church. Well, when President Bush came out with that statement that American families should be more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons, my brother said, "Hey, at least Homer goes to church with his family! John Walton doesn't!!" :-) Definitely said as a joke, and I hope you all find the humor in it that I did. Best wishes to everyone! Thank you for putting up with such a long letter from me! Claire Natola KAREN'S COMMENT: I can help you all with the James Dean connection to Richard Thomas. He wasn't in the mini series "East of Eden", as I had thought he may have been, but he did once make a movie called either "Twenty Four Hours of the Rebel" or "September 30 1955" which dealt about the days leading up to the death of James Dean and the teenagers reactions to it. I suspect that is probably the connection between James Dean, East of Eden and Richard Thomas . The description of the movie is: "This film, aired on television as 24 Hours of the Rebel, delves into the hero-worship aura that surrounded James Dean following his tragic death. This stars The Waltons' Richard Thomas (getting a break from his usual "goody-goody" roles), who, as character "Jimmy J," is stunned by Dean's death and gathers his friends in a drinking foray where the stupor comes more from their turbulent emotions than from the suds. Quite respected for its real-life glimpses, this film is the debut of Dennis Quaid. -- All-Movie Guide" Taken from <allmovie.com>
It seems many schoolteachers (myself included) are Walton's fans. The values and sense of family they had is what is missing for today's young people. Believe it or not, I have many high schoolers who reluctantly admit to watching the re-runs. So many of them don't have regular contact with parents---especially fathers--let alone grandparents. I was blessed with a great-grandfather (Pa Strader) who was very much like Grandpa. My children watch The Waltons; for them, these TV characters are almost like relatives. The show first aired when I was in high school---it was a stabilizing influence in a rocky world--my parents were separated (eventually divorced) and there was physical and emotional abuse in the home. I wanted my family to be like the ones on TV; though it never worked out that way, the family I have today is loved and cared for so much--I like to think I got good advice from Olivia, John, Grandpa, Grandma, and the other kin from the mountain. Best wishes, Debbie Foster
KAREN'S COMMENT: Yes I seem to recall something more about the Judge too.
Dear Karen, I hope you will humor me but I wish to direct this to Alan who wrote in your last digest. Alan If you read this , I just want you to know that you have moved me to tears. No I did not grow up like you did, I had a very loving family and a life similar to the Waltons in that my parents loved and cared for me very very much with no abuse. But your letter made me realize just how much I have taken for granted what all my parents did for me. After reading you letter I read it to my children and they too felt the compassion for you as I have. The Waltons indeed are a family to pattern raising children by, If all parents would listen to their children the world would be a lot better place and if folks would remember that God gave all of us our children, He can also take them back, people would truly appreciate their kids more. I try everyday to let my kids know how much they are loved and cared for. My heart goes out to you. God bless you and He will truly reward you someday for all of your hardship.If you keep trying you can heal those scars and overcome all of the bad things. Keep watching the Waltons it is reality that folk really do live like that today. Come to my house and watch!!!!! Scott Vestal PS Thanks Karen for the space and time!! I felt I just had to respond. Stay warm!!! KAREN'S COMMENT: I'm sure that Alan will appreciate your comments Scott. We really do need to treasure our children. They grow up far too quickly.
Hi Everyone, I have a Waltons "sighting" of sorts. For the Fourth of July holiday, the History channel has been running a series called "The American Revolution". Michael Learned is reading the role of Abigail Adams. I must've been really sleepy watching it Saturday because it wasn't until I saw the credits that I realized it was her! And in case anyone is still interested, Mary McDonough is still in the Montgomery Wards commercials. They run often on TNN, and I even have a couple on tape now as they've occurred during the Waltons reruns. So keep your eyes peeled. Larissa
KAREN'S COMMENT: That's one series I've never heard of! Well spotted.
Hello Karen and friends! I am writing to see if anyone else will be going to the October Waltons Reunion at Schuyler, VA in October of this year? My fiancée is taking me there for our honeymoon and I was hoping to meet a few new Walton friends! Keep in touch please! God Bless, Cindy
KAREN'S COMMENT: What a loving fiancée you must have Cindy, to share you with hundreds of other Waltons fans during your honeymoon. :-)) Hope you enjoy it. Hello Karen and Fellow Walton Fans, I hope that you are all having a good week. My daughter and I are very sad about losing Roy Rogers, a dear and wonderful man. Just a quick comment today about the WWII Homefront discussion. I am a Librarian, so I am aware that there are documentaries out there that cover this topic. But, I thought it might be interesting to discuss the accuracy of the Waltons' depiction of life in America during this time. My family was not in the United States until the 1960's. But, I enjoy reading anything about the Waltons! I have another Waltons siting! I spotted Ellen Corby in the musical On Moonlight Bay, with Doris Day and Gordon Macrae. Take care everyone. Silvia from California KAREN'S COMMENT: Ellen Corby was indeed in On Moonlight Bay. I can never pick her by looks in her older movies, but the voice always gives her away!
Last weekend I had the privilege of visiting the Walton's Mountain Museum in Schuyler, Virginia. This was my second time to visit there. My husband and I arrived in Lovingston, VA, on Friday afternoon. We stayed at the Village Inn in Lovingston. Those of you who have visited the museum know that there are very few accommodations in the area. I can highly recommend the Village Inn. It is only about 12 miles or so from Schuyler and it is very clean, pleasant, and reasonably priced. We didn't tour the museum on Friday; it closes at 4:00 PM. But we did drive up to Schuyler and look around. We saw the Rockfish River and even a little railroad crossing with a sign that said "Rockfish". It did not look like the town of Rockfish on TV! We saw the church and the Hamner family house. On Saturday we went to the museum as soon as it opened and had a delightful tour guide who obviously enjoys her job. We spent a couple of hours looking at the displays and re-creations of the sets. I had a wonderful time and I hope to go back in October for the reunion. I have recently updated my Walton's webpage and moved it to a new location. The new URL is: http://web.mountain.net/~waltons/ I have photos of last weekend's visit to the museum as well as some other new features, including some puzzles that can be printed out. Alex and Marca: Thanks for sharing the interview with Ellen Geer. I enjoyed it! Brenda in WV
KAREN'S COMMENT: It sounds like you had a terrific vacation Brenda. The new additions to your page sound interesting. I'll check it out this week. By the way, if anyone missed the special Ellen Geer interview, please let me know. There were a few odd ones returned to me. |
